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Captain America (Pt. 2)

How this character was influenced by politics and society

By Selena VazquezPublished 5 years ago 3 min read
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The political and social landscape influenced this character as much as this character influenced society. He was continuously adapted to fit into the events that were happening at different time periods in America. The political and social event that was occurring during his time of creation and publication was World War II. The Second World War was a global war that lasted from 1939-1945; the two sides of this conflict were the Allies and the Axis. Captain America was on the side of the Allies where he fought against Hitler and the Nazis; in the comics, he fought specifically against a fictional Nazi science division titled "Hydra."

Captain America has been used as propaganda various times throughout his comics, and political messages were a part of his storyline for a very long time. Bellotto reveals how the cover of Captain America Comics No. 1 was Steve Rogers punching Adolf Hitler in the face; he also indicates, “after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Cap graciously included Emperor Hirohito in his campaign of ‘Punishing Everyone We Fought in WWII’” (Bellotto 1). For clarification, since Kirby and Simon created Captain America during World War II, he was used to empower and persuade the American people to join together and combat these malicious enemies. He inspired people in such an extensive magnitude that there were real citizens actually joining the army in order to battle Nazis because Captain America affirmed it was the right thing to do.

In terms of this World War, Captain America was not just used as propaganda in the comics, but within the fictional Marvel Cinematic Universe as well. In the movie Captain America: The First Avenger, a government official remarks, “I’ve seen you in action Steve, more importantly, the country’s seen it... The enlistment lines have been around the block since your picture hit the newsstands. You don’t take a soldier, a symbol like that, and hide him in a lab” (Dir. Johnston 0:47:24-0:47:40). To explain, people in the cinematic universe were joining the army because a newspaper published the story of how Steve saved a child from being murdered, and thus, the government official viewed Steve Rogers as having the potential to increase the number of people who became soldiers. The official then hires Steve Rogers to be the main act in a singing tour where he performs a propagandistic song in front of an American audience.

The song lyrics are, “Who’s strong and brave, here to save the American way? Not all of us can storm a beach or drive a tank, but there’s still a way all of us can fight... Each one you buy is a bullet in the barrel of your best guy’s gun... We can’t ignore there’s a threat and a war we must win... We can’t do that without bullets and bandages, tanks and tents... Every bond you buy will help protect someone you love” (Dir. Johnston 0:48:20-0:50:48). The entirety of the song is designed to persuade people to donate their money in order for the country to be able to buy the necessary materials to win the war, and Captain America is used as a catalyst for gaining this money. The song lyrics also promote a pro-American stance that portrays the United States as being an amazing country, and the fact that Captain America is singing those words makes the public more susceptible to accept that perspective.

Not only was Captain America influenced by the Second World War, but by communism as well. Bellotto claims, “Labeled ‘Captain America... Commie Smasher!,’ the good Captain became a mouthpiece for McCarthy-era insanity” (Bellotto 1). Communism is a political theory advocating for a classless society in which all property is publicly owned. The Red Scare was a time period in the United States where there was an elevated paranoia about communists being everywhere, which terrified the United States because they are a capitalist country. The quote depicts how Captain America during this time was used to slander communists and to encourage the belief at the moment that communists were swarming within the United States.

In all these examples, Captain America was utilized to paint the United States as being the “good guy” and to denounce those who opposed this country as wrong and malevolent. Other examples of how Captain America was impacted by the situations that were occurring in the United States were when he fought against government corruption in the 1970s, drug use in the 1990s, and terrorists in the 2000s (Birner 1). This depicts once more how Captain America was used as propaganda to influence the opinions of the American people in accordance with the real-life events that were occurring at the time.

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About the Creator

Selena Vazquez

She/Her/Hers-Fandoms-Books-Movies-TV shows-Intersectional Feminist-Slytherin-Aquarius- Just an IB student trying to get CAS hours-

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